The present invention relates to methods and compositions for supplementing the diet of humans performing weight-training exercise in order to increase muscle mass and decrease body fat.
Athletes depend on exercise regimens to build muscle mass and reduce body fat in order to give greater definition to muscular development, which is important in body building competitions. Even non-athletes may use exercise regimens to build muscle mass and reduce body fat in order to appear more healthy and fit.
In the area of diet supplementation previous research has shown that creatine in particular, but also L-carnitine, and pyruvate can improve performance for body-builders and other athletes. Effective supplementation can play a critical role in performance and is frequently the determining factor for the athletes who win competitions. Because of the importance of this area to athletes across sports as well as animal trainers, a great deal of research in the area has been fostered. For example it has been found that supplementation with creatine led to increases in the amount of weight lifted via bench press and squats in resistance-trained men, increased handgrip strength and dorsiflexion ankle strength in patients with neuromuscular disease, and increased strength and better sprint performance in football players.
New findings in the area of supplementation are of great interest. For example, it is unknown to what extent various additives may substitute for, replace, show synergistic effects or interfere with the benefit derived from a supplement given alone. This was the motivating factor for pursuing these investigations and revealing the results in this invention.
The present invention relates to methods and compositions for supplementing the diet of humans performing weight-training exercise in order to increase fat-free mass more rapidly than exercise without the supplements. The present invention provides ribose, alone or in combination with other carbohydrates, electrolytes, enzymes, or other ingredients to increase muscle mass and decrease body fat in humans. The supplement is to be used in conjunction with a preferred regimen of weight-training exercise in order to achieve the desired results more rapidly than with exercise alone.
Preferably, D-Ribose is taken orally in a dose from 0.5 to 40 grams, more preferably 2 to 20 gm, most preferably 3 to 8 gms. Most preferably the D-Ribose is administered just before and just after the exercise regimen. It is preferred that the D-Ribose be administered daily, whether or not the subject is exercising that day. It is preferred that the daily dose be divided into two doses. Additive effects may be obtained by combining the D-Ribose with creatine. Still more additive effects may be obtained by combining the D-Ribose and creatine with L-carnitine, pyruvate, magnesium and chromium picolinate.
The preferred weight-training exercise regimen includes repetitions of contraction of leg, arm, abdominal and back muscles.